Between wonder and shame: the conflict at the heart of GTAV

[wraggster]

http://media.edge-online.com/wp-content/uploads/edgeonline/2013/10/GTA-V.jpg (http://media.edge-online.com/wp-content/uploads/edgeonline/2013/10/GTA-V.jpg)I admire the detail and artistry that has gone into the creation of Los Santos a great deal. Rockstar has pushed two ageing consoles to their technical limits, and GTAV gets so much right; the shootouts, the countless incidental gags and details, the heists, the weight of the cars – escaping from the authorities is as thrilling as it has ever been. And the myriad idle pleasures in the game evoke a sense of place unlike any other GTA, whether you are wandering its streets, taking a selfie, getting a stupid haircut, pootling around on a bike or simply gazing out across the game’s glistening vistas.Its highs are a confluence of technical achievement and game design which, as we said in our GTAV review (http://www.edge-online.com/review/grand-theft-auto-v-review/), sends an intimidating message to the rest of the industry. Beat that.And yet when GTAV disappoints, it really disappoints. The misogyny, the cliched characters and the cringeworthy dialogue. Tedious, lengthy missions which require you to operate a crane or do an endless ****ing yoga routine or drive from A to B enduring a volley of aimless NPC chatter.I’m playing GTAV as I suspect most people are – a two or three all-too-brief half hour sessions midweek, a snatched hour or two at the weekend. So firing up GTAV to progress through the main story has become a game of chance – will the next half an hour be a brilliant, explosive guns-and-helicopters romp across Los Santos, or a dreary spot of enforced busywork? Will it give me reason to admire Rockstar’s work or end up feeling vaguely ashamed of myself?

http://www.edge-online.com/features/between-wonder-and-shame-the-conflict-at-the-heart-of-gtav/